5G will both reduce costs and unlock new income streams for the manufacturing industry, making it easier to monitor and analyse production in real-time, using far more data than has been possible before. This effect will help factories and production lines reduce machine downtime, cut down on wasted resources and minimise defective output. A reduction in the skills gap and improvements to health and safety are cited as further benefits.
The report also finds the benefits of 5G will not immediately be felt equally around the world, with high income countries that already contribute the most to global GDP benefitting first, given they have the most money to reinvest in the adoption of new technologies. However, upon reaching 2030, this disparity and imbalance will start to be redressed.
In short, the report challenges the manufacturing industry to build an understanding of 5G and its benefits, stating: “We have demonstrated that 5G has unique capabilities that can be leveraged by the manufacturing industry to introduce new use cases and ultimately help the sector increase productivity and improve efficiencies, as well as transform business models more fundamentally.
“However, for the manufacturing industry to take advantage of the benefits of 5G, it will need to take an active role to make sure that 5G evolves quickly to include technological advancements that will support new use cases (namely those that require ultra-reliable low latency) and be deployed in (remote) areas close to manufacturing hubs.”
Victor Zhang, senior vice president at Huawei, says: “In a world where we are seeing economic slowdown, and manufacturing in many regions facing significant challenges, 5G provides great opportunities to transform this important sector. However, if we’re to maximise this chance, we have to act quickly. That means the industry working with governments and regulators to push ahead with the rollout of 5G for the benefit of our economy.
“5G represents a $740 billion boom for our manufacturing sector,” he adds. “We stand ready to work with industry to make it happen.”
